Saturday, February 24, 2018

Present day Kerala, "God’s own country", is the ribbon-like green
stretch of land placed between the Arabian Sea and the Western Ghats - a chain
of high hills which begins from south of Thiruvananthapuram (also colloquially
referred as Trivandrum) to the small town of Kasargode on the border with
Karnataka state. Legend says that Parasurama, an incarnation of Maha Vishn,
gifted all the land he conquered from Kshatriya kings, as per instruction
of Lord Rama. When he found that he did not have any place to live, he
came to a place called Gokarna near the Western Ghats mountains and
threw his marble axe into the sea. The land reclaimed by him from the sea is
the present day Kerala, although Gokarna and a large stretch of land, said to
have been reclaimed by Parasurama, are now in the state of Karnataka. The
transliteration of the name 'Keralam' is “Garden of coconuts”, but some people
believe that the name came from Cherala (the garden of Cheras-the first kings of
Kerala).Keralas or Udra Keralas were also mentioned in the Mahabharata Epic
as a kingdom which took part in the Kurukshetra War on the side of the
Pandavas.

Legends say that when Parasurama started living there he
could not find any Brahmins among them. Hence, he seems to have brought in
Namboodiri Brahmins, who remain the original Kerala Brahmins, and also
consecrated 108 Shiva temples, 108 Bhagawathi (Shaktam) temples and
18 Ayyappa temples. The list of such temples, founded by Parasurama, are
available in a few folk songs.

The first known rulers of Kerala were the Cheras and the
first known language was Tamil. The first inscriptions were written in archaic
scripts called Kolezhuthu and Vattezhthu. One of the greatest among the Chera
kings was Cheran Chenguttuvan. His brother Elango wrote a great Tamil book
called 'Silappadikaram'. Kannagi was the heroine of the book and has many
temples in Kerala dedicated to her. After the Cheras, Kerala split in to
several smaller principalities constantly at war with each other.

The first temples of Kerala were called Kavu
(places of security or protection). Most of them were temples under a tree in
the forest, with no buildings or roof. Similar temples exist all over Tamil
Nadu as well. In a majority of such places of worship, the gods
consecrated were the guardian deities of the village, who were
supplicated to guard the village from enemies, both natural and supernatural.
In some cases, a hero who defended the village, or Mariamma (the goddess of
Pox) and Lord Ganesa were revered as the deity of the village. In the
case of Kerala, most of these 'Kavus' housed the temple of Goddess Parvathi
or Kali. Slowly these Kavus became transformed into temples.
Side-by-side, large numbers of temples mushroomed up for Lord Shiva, and
Lord Vishnu and his Avatharas. Unlike Tamil Nadu however, temples
dedicated to Lord Subrahmanya were very few. There are a large number of
temples for Lord Ayyappa, who was a prince of a small princely state called
Pandalam, and he was considered an incarnation of Dharma Sastha (the
son of Lord Shiva and Vishnu), whose temples are still popular
in the Thirunelveli district of Tamil Nadu.

Unlike temples in Tamil Nadu, most of the temples were
neither of granite structures nor were they gigantic. In fact, brick and
laterite stones were used in building these temples and they were comparatively
small. The sanctum called the “Sree Kovil” was either square or round. The
roofs were mostly clad with copper sheets or unbaked clay tiles. They were in
the shape of a pyramid in the case of square temples and conical in the case of
round temples. Some temples have 'Kalasam', which is an ornamental piece made
of either brass, or in a few cases gold, embroidered near the edge of the roof.
A very large majority of temples did not have entrance gopurams or Vimanams
over the deity, like those in Tamil Nadu. Temple architectures similar to those
in Kerala are also found in the coastal Karnataka districts. Many
archaeologists are of the opinion that these structures closely resemble the
Himalayan temples. The Sree Kovil was surrounded by a Prakaram (an enclosed
space, sometimes with a small corridor). Just outside the Sree Kovil was the
Namaskara Mandapam, which was used by the learned Brahmin males for reciting
slokas and Vedas. In most cases, there was only one outlet from this
enclosed space. On the south western corner, a kitchen was normally
constructed, and some temples have sub-temples in this first Prakaram itself.
Inside the prakaram there are several 'Bali peedams', which
represent deities like the Nava Grahas. Outside this Prakaram, there
normally is a Dwaja Sthambham (flag pole) and a big Bali peetam
(stone for sacrifice). Big temples often have several small sub-temples outside
the Prakaram. Some temples have a Koothambalam, where religious dramas are
enacted.The outside walls of the 'Prakaram' are normally fitted with several
oil lamps called Vilakku Madam. The structure with the prakaram and the Sree
Kovil is called 'Nalambalam'. Very few temples have any sculptures. Some temples
also have murals and small sculptures carved in wood.

The idols in these temples are normally made either of
stone or wood, though in a very few cases they are made of Pancha-loha, an
alloy of copper, gold, silver, brass, and iron, with copper as the major
constituent (thus making Panchaloha generically a cast brass or bronze). Unlike
Tamil Nadu's temples, there is no 'Uthsava-Vigrahams' which are taken out of
the temples during festivals. Instead, a 'Thidambu', or an elaborate
artistically created arch-shaped mount with gilded frontage, having the image
of the deity, is taken out and mounted on caparisoned elephants. 'Ratha"
or Chariots, or floats etc are rarely seen in Kerala. In most of the Kerala
temples, only one God is consecrated inside the sanctum although multi-deity
temples are also present in some places. For example, it is either a Krishna Temple,
or Parvathi temple or a Shivatemple. Of course, the idol of Ganesa can
be seen in most temples, since he is regarded as the common factor for
any worship.

Abhishekams (anointment) are performed only to stone or
metal idols. In the case of wooden idols, the preferred wood was that of the
jack fruit tree. Abhishekam is not performed for such statues but the statue is
coated with saffron mixed in oil (Chandattam). This ensures a very long life
for the wooden statues. The preferred form of worship in Kerala
temples is based on 'Thanthra'. The priests who do worship are either
Namboodiris (Kerala Brahmins) or Embranthiris (Kannada Brahmins) belonging to
coastal Karnataka. Some of them are also called Potthis. Since the worship form
is centered round Thanthra, it is very much different from the Agama form
of worship practiced in Tamil Nadu temples. As an example, were a thanthri to
come out of the sanctum even for a moment, he has to take a dip at the temple
tank -- that is fully immerse himself and remain in the wet dress right through
his time inside the sanctum. Tamil Iyer priests are not recruited in Kerala
temples, since they follow the agama type of worship. Rather, Tamil Iyers
have built their own temples in Agraharams where they live, and follow their
own way of worship. Uthralikkavu near Wadakkancheri is perhaps the
only Kerala temple where a Tamil Iyer is a Thanthri.

Most of the temples were owned by kings or noble
families. With the coming of democracy, most of them are under the management
of autonomous organizations called Devaswams, which are part of the
government. Most of these temples had huge lands as property, but with the
enactment of Land Reforms Act by the communist government, most of them became
very poor. Nevertheless, today only a very small percentage of temples are
dilapidated or neglected. This is because every temple is visited by the local
population in the mornings after a bath as a part of their culture and
tradition, as also they consider the temple as their own. This community
awareness is so great that wherever they are in India or abroad, they make it a
point to attend the festivals of the temple and contribute to its
upkeep. This fact is a little strange, since the major politicians of Kerala
are atheists.

Unlike other states of India, while the worship in the
sanctum is performed by Namboodiris or Embrandiris, the management of these
temples is done by the rich landlords, assisted by a few Hindu castes
called Ambalavasis. (People who live or are dependent on the temples). They are
normally strict vegetarians and have different roles to play in the upkeep of a
temple. For example, the 'Poduval' caste is in charge of management, the
'Warrier' caste is in charge of looking after the garden of the temple and
providing flower garlands for worship in the temple, the 'kurukkals' are in
charge of supplying milk to the temple, the 'Marars' are in charge of playing of
musical instruments for the temple, the 'Poduval' and 'Nambeesan' are in charge
of singing in front of the deity and the 'Chakyars' are in charge of
propagating the ancient stories about the temple. Castes with such delineation
of responsibilities in temple affairs are not found outside Kerala.

Apart from the 'Agama' practice in contrast to the
'thanthra' practice, several aspects of temple activities are very much
different in Kerala. In most of the temples, the custom of Sribali (Seeveli) is
carried out, which involves taking the Lord around the temple. In poor temples,
this is done on the head of the priest, but in rich temples, this is done on
the top of elephants. Chariots are almost never present in Kerala temples,
except in those managed by Tamil Brahmins. However, the deity is taken out of
the temple on the top of elephants to the nearest river. There the deity is
given the ritual bath (called Arattu in Malayalam). Apart from this, most of
the temples have festivals called Poorams and Vela. Both these festivals
are held in honour of the deity by the local people. The population is
normally divided on the basis of the locality they live in and each locality
takes a pooram or Vela to the temple. There is virtually a competition among
each locality to excel the others. Most of them have seeveli on the top of
elephants accompanied by an instrumental ensemble called Pancha Vadhyam with
its own typical instruments. Musical instruments like Nadaswaram of Tamil Nadu
are not popular in Kerala temples, though it is widely used in family
functions. In many temples, as a grand finale, in festivals like Pooram or
Vela, a display of a huge quantities of fireworks is done for entertainment. In
fact, some temple festivals like the Thrissur Pooram have attracted large
numbers of visitors, from both within and outside the country. The fireworks
are an offering to please the God inside the temple. In most of the temples
where the presiding deity is a Goddess, an oracle called 'Velichappadu' is
present. These Velichapadus go into trances and perform activities which are
paranormal. They are especially active during festivals and many devotees
consult them as representative of the deity to mitigate their personal
problems.

Another practice in Kerala temples is that males are
allowed entry into the temple only if they do not wear a shirt or a vest - that
is, they are uncovered above the waist. Most of them enter bare chested but
some drape a towel. Women devotees have to wear Kerala-centric
dresses like Saree, Mundu or Pavadai (petticoat). They are not allowed inside
the temple without these typical Kerala-type dresses. Most of the temples do
not allow non-Hindus, and photography inside the temple is strictly prohibited.

As a reminder of the nature of worship practiced in this
region in the past, there are temples dedicated to snake Gods, Para Brahmam,
the individual Pandavas, and to Brahma, who normally is not worshiped.
There is a temple near Kottayam, where the Goddess is considered to have
menstrual periods. In Kodungallor, people believe that the Goddess would only
be pleased by singing of very vulgar sexually explicit songs during the
Kodungallore Bharani (a major festival).

Yet another interesting aspect of Kerala temple is the
'Ashta Mangalya Prasnam'. This is an astrological investigation to ascertain
whether a particular decision by the temple management has divine approval or
to seek specific remedy for calamitous happenings around the temple. For
example, if the temple wants to find out whether a new idol can be consecrated
or acquire one more elephant etc, an ashta mangalya prasnam is resorted to. A
group of very capable astrologers carry out the Ashta Mangalya Prasnam, where
there is a sustained debate as to what the position of each star means. The
majority opinion is taken as the divine interpretation and the decision is
finalized and carried out. Both the people as well as the Devaswoms strictly
follow the recommendations of the astrologers.

Saturday, January 6, 2018

(My heart felt thanks to Smt Rajeswari for permitting this great
write up to be put in my blog.God bless her)

Pallipuram Agraharam ( my native agraharam) in the heart
of Palakkad town is a settlement of Vaishnavites.. The Lakshmi Narayana Swamy
temple in the agraharam is one, believed to be constructed by the immigrants
who came here presumably 700 years ago. Inside the prakaram of Lakshminarayana
Swamy temple, Poorna-Pushakalamba sameta shri Hariharaputra ( Ayyappa) sannidhi
was also built years ago.The natives of pallipuram are followers of Sri Ahobila
Mutt and Vaikanasa panchangam.

The temple is unique in its construction because the
rising sun's rays on the mEsha Sankramam Day, falls on the lotus feet of the
Deity. The unique "jala Pradhishta" of the murthy might have been
done realising the difficulty in providing a sea bed to lord Narayana. The
Deity is in a sitting posture with Mahalakshmi seated on the left lap".
Kodiyettam for ( flag hoisting in Dwajasthambam) begins on the first day of
mEsha sankramam ie on Vishu. And Rathotsavam is celebrated on the 9th day.

"Legend says that centuries ago when the village
houses had thatched roofs, there were frequent fires and the villagers were put
to lot of hardships. They did not know what to do and decided to perform
Sahasrannama japam for a mandalam period at Brahma Muhoortham after taking holy
bath in the temple tank.

During the course of the parayana, one of the villagers
suddenly got inspired and said " to remedy this fire havoc, go to
kurichimalai (2 kms away from Pallipuram) and bring the idol of Lord Ayyapa
which is visible on the foot steps of the hill and install the idol on the
right side of Lakshminarayana Swamy inside the prakaram." The villagers
immediately rushed to the spot and found the idol and installed it".

Here Ayyappa is worshiped as Hariharaputra along with
Purna and Pushkala. Every year in the month of Dec/Jan, the agraharam
celebrates ShAshtaprIti (Ayyappa Festival) At the time of main DeepAradhana,
the entire Payasam ( 2 different types of Kheer/pudding) is offered as
naivedyam.

Until 3 decades ago, majority of the settlers were in
business, banking in particular.As a result, the agraharam is known for it's
hospitality and the Rathotsavam in the month of April and Ayyappan festival
feast of the Pallipuram agraharam is quite popular. Majority of the natives
lost their land holdings after the Land Tribunal Act.Slowly they began moving
out in search of better opportunities.

The annual Shastapriti festival ( Ayyappan festival)
falls today. Lord Ayyappa is offered the two payasams ( pudding) as Naivedyam.
Thereafter the payasams are served during Anna-dAnam.

Thursday, December 28, 2017

Alathiyur is a
small village near Tirur of
Malappuram district. Here there is a
famous Hanuman temple called as Sree Alathiyur Perumthrikovil

.Devotees believe that this Hanuman was consecrated 3000
years back by sage Vasishta
himself.

The most
interesting fact of the temple is it is a Rama temple where Hanuman is only an Upa devatha. Rama is without Sita and Hanuman appears
to be taking orders from Rama. Devotees believe that Lord Rama is sending Hanuman to search for
Sita and is telling him the “Abijnana Vakyam( words for identification) that would help him to identify himself to Sita when he locates her. So the
face of Hanuman shows concentration and attention. It is interesting to see
that Lord Lakshmana also is not with him
because Lord Rama wants the secret
words not to be heard by any one except his emissary. Possibly this is the
story of Indra’s son attacking Sita as a crow. Sri. Lakshamana is separately
positioned to the west within the temple
complex a but a few meters away from Sri Rama, Outside the periphery of Naalambalam. It is
believed that Sri Lakshmana was keeping himself at a small distance away
deliberately..

In the temple
there is also a long granite
plantform , with sea being indicated at one end, possibly symbolic
of the great mountain platform from which Hanuman jumped
to cross the sea.

This Hanuman is
considered as guardian of children .He
is also suppose remove mental agonies of
people just like he removed the mental
agony of Lord Rama.Most of the Malayali families around the temple pray before going to bed “Oh dear Hanuman of
Alathiyur, Kindly keep bad dreams away from us And if we were to be haunted by
bad dreams do please wake us up by gently taping us with your tail.” It is
believed that those who recites the verse before going to bed will not have
bad dreams”

The devotees coming
to the temple are encouraged to run, jump and cross the granite platfom so that their children would become more healthy

The Alathiyoor perumthrikkovil temple is special to its
devotees for very many reasons. Sri Rama is the presiding deity here. The daily
pooja, rituals, offerings by devotees and spectacular annual temple festival –
all are held in honour of the presiding deity, Sri Rama. However, the devotees
popularly prefer to the temple, the “Hanumankavu” temple. And in a way, it
symbolizes the triumph of the supreme strength of bhakthi of Sri Hanuman as an
ideal, which overshadows Sri Rama. maryada
purushothaman – he is separated from his beloved consort, Seetha, by the mighty
Ravana who has abducted her to Lanka. Sri Rama is seen entrusting Hanuman the
impossible task of locating the whereabouts of Seetha. Sri Rama confides to
Hanuman about how to look for Seetha in the Lanka. Hanuman, now, only has to
cross the vast and formidable sea that separates the Lanka from the main land.
33 crore Gods gathered to witness this significant act. It is an act in
which the avathar purush Sri Rama seeks the assistance of his Bhaktha, Hanuman.
All the Gods bestow Hanuman with their enormous strength, so that he succeeds
in his mission. For Hanuman, this is a very significant moment. And hence, his pre-eminence,
at Alathiyoor.

The favorite offering of Sri. Hanuman is “wet avil (
Pothi avil )“ and another important offering is “kadali” plantain.

The temple became
famous because of Smt Jayalalitha’s visit
on the advice of an astrologer .After that very large number of
devotees visit this temple every day.

The temple is 6 km
away from Tirur Railway station and 39
km away from Calicut international air port

Wednesday, December 27, 2017

Cherpulassery ins an
important town of Valluvanadu, and is between Pattambi and Perinthalmanna. It
has one very famous Ayyappan temple. Here
Swamy Ayyappan is with his wife Prabha
devi and son Sathyaka. This temple is
called as Sabarimala of Malabar as well
as Sabarimala of women. This is one of the 108 Ayyappa temples consecrated
by Lord Parsaurama,It seems Dharma Sastha ascended the throne of this temple
after gaining mastery in Vedas
ad so many people bring their
children for Vidhatambham at
this temple

There is an interesting story about its origin, It seems
ten Nambhudiri families were living near this temple.One of them started praying the Dharma Sastha at Thiruvullakavu
sastha temple at Peruvanam for the birth
of a child to them .On the day he
completed his penance when he had decided to return back, he saw a black stone near him, which was not there before. As he was a scholar he
could find out that it was Dharma Sastha
himself. So with the rice and Jaggery that he had , he prepared Ada and offered it to the idol .He
indeed got a son who became a
mendicant and passed away.Since there
was no one in his family , his
manager converted their residence in to
the present temple ,The Gaeden of Jasmine maintained by the Nambudiri became the sanctum sanctorum of the temple. Nava Grahas , Ganapathy, Brahma Rakshas and Nagaraja are the upra devathas of this temple.

This is one of the
few temples of Lord ayyappa where marriages can be solemnized in front of
Ayyappa A large number of pregnant women also visit this temple during the 7th month
of their pregnancy. It is customary for expectant mothers to visit temples and
seek the blessings of the deity. They typically start with the temples in their
neighborhood and end this season of temple visits at the Cherpulassery Ayyappan
Kavu. Ada is the favourite offering to Lord
Sastha here There is a famous ten day pooram festival in this temple

In this temp[e Theeyattu
which consists of fire and
singing of stories is offered to the God as a special offering .This is performed THiyyadi Nambiars

“The all-male art centres around the mythological story of
the birth of Lord Ayyappa from the relationship of Lord Vishnu in
his ephemeral impersonation as Mohini and Lord Shiva .

The most common version of Thiyyattu involves four phases of
presentation: a) Kalamezhuthu (sketching the kalam—picture—of Ayyappa using
natural pigments), b) Kottum Pattum (rendition of invocatory songs of Ayyappa
and a stylised narration of the story of his birth), c) Koothu gesture -laden
dance enacting the build-up story to the delivery of the lord) and d)
Velichchappaadu (the slow-paced to frenzied dance of the oracle who eventually
erases the kalam—the image of the lord sketched on the sanctified floor). It
takes roughly a couple of hours for the kalam (image) of the lord to be
completed, after which the rest of the three rituals would consume nearly three
hours altogether.

The picture of Ayyappa is sketched and embellished in five
natural colours—white (rice powder), yellow (turmeric powder), green (ground
semi-dry leaves of the 'vaaka' or manchadi' tree, red (a mix of turmeric powder
and slaked lime) and black (powdered charred rice husk). The lord invariably
holds his weapons like the sword and the bow-and-arrow, and, in more elaborate
versions is sketched mounted on the tiger or the horse.

The songs—accompanied by the beats of 'para', a smaller
version of the chenda , and the cymbals called ilathalam —praising
the lord bear a mix of quaint old Malayalam and Tamil with a
streak of endemic tunes, some of which can be traced to classical ragas of
the Sopanam style of Kerala music besides that belonging to the Carnatic
idiom. The stylised rendition of the birth of Ayyappa, called Thottam, also
sticks to the same mix of languages, but is devoid of music.

The Koothu is enacted with no make-up but a defined set of
costumes. Facial emotions are nil, dance movements are minimal and hand
gestures would look the less refined versions of Koodiyattam and Kathakali
. The Koothu is usually performed to the accompaniment of chenda, ilathalam and
'para'.

The Velichchappadu (oracle), wielding a small sword, is
bare-chested but for the garland and, canonically, with a flowy hair; the face
either bearded or clean-shaven. Around the waist, he is draped in cloth pieces
of white and red colours. The oracle begins with slow steps while
circumambulating around the 'kalam', but the tempo gains with the circles he
make—around 9 or 11 of them, overall. Then he leaps onto the image in a frenzy,
but is calm when he later erases the image with both legs. The face of the lord
alone is erased with the (right) hand. Out from the 'kalam', the oracle utters
'revelatory' sentences in (presumed) trance -- 'kalpana' as they are called.
The devotees are distributed with the prasadam which is the mixed powder
used in the 'kalam'.

The art is sometimes staged in bigger forms that last from
dawn to late night when it is called Udayasthamaya Thiyyattu. In such cases,
the Koothu would deal with twelve stories ahead of the birth of Ayyappa. Such
performances usually feature the challenging 'Pantheeraayiram', which is when
the oracle would take a (three- to four-hour-long) break from the
circumambulations to break (dehusked and sufficiently polished) coconuts
totalling 12,000 to the rhythmic beats of chenda-and-ilathalam concert that
would gain speed towards the climax.

The Thiyyadi Nambiar families, despite their existence in
central Kerala, enjoy the popularity of their art more in the upstate Malabar belt.
“ (Quoted from Wikipedia)

The temple opens
daily at 5 Am and is open up to 11.30
Am and again opens in 5pm and is kept open till 8 pm

The nearest Bus stand is Ottha palam from where the temple is 17 km away .Buses
are also available from Pattambi and
Perinthalmanna. and the temple address
is

Tuesday, December 26, 2017

The great Varaha
temple of Kerala famous for its
Abeeshta Sidhi pooja(Desire fulfilling
worship)

Panniyur Maha
Varaha Temple

Compiled by

P.R.Ramachander

This is the very famous Varaha temple in Kerala (There is a Lakshmi
Varaha temple in Trivandrum) and it is believed that it was the first temple to be
consecrated by Lord Parasurama after
recovering the land of Kerala from the sea.It is situated in a place
called KUmbidi in Palakkad district ,
near a place called Kuttipuram

There is an
interesting story about this temple
.Lord Parsurama r to get rid of the sin of killing several kshatriyas had to dobate all the land he had won to sage Kashyapa.
After that he became a person who is landless .AS per instruction of Lord
Vishnu , he stood up
on the Gokarna mountains and threw his axe in to the sea and recovered
some land from the sea.The new land had
lots of problems and Lord Vishnu instructed
him to v build a Varaha temple so that the land gets stabilised.This is the temple
of Mahavaraha in Panniyur , Kumbdi. Some
how atttemptes to build a temple v building there did not succeed .Once when some carpenters
were trying to v build it , an old man who was sad came in to the temple .The carpenters neglected
him and even refused to give him food.He was Perumthachan the great
carpenter who was son of sage Vararuchi.He theninspected the wod
that they were going to use
to build the temple and marked several defects in them and left. But
that night the carpenters were woken up by the sound of chisel of Peruthachan ,
who completed the work of that temple. HE then told that carpenters that he
would never touch the chisel and
this would be the last temple built by
him .His chisel and rod are still preserved
u in this great temple.

Later many families
of Nambudiris settled in Kerala.The family called Azhvanchery THambrakkal
settled down in Panniyur and
Kalpanchery thamprakkal settled down in
the neighbouring Suka puram. There was
rivalry between these villages and in this rivalry where black magic was
involved the original idol of Maha Varaha
was broken and burnt.A great scholar called Appath Adeeri
six hundred years that the temple
would regain its glory He had also predicted
that if a devotee says.
“Varahamurthy Rakshikkane(Oh Lord Varaha
please protect me” thrice , he would get
fred of all his problems. He also had
said that any one doing “Abeeshta Karya
Sidhi pooja”(Worship for fulfilment of
desires) in this temple would get g his desires fulfilled.

A recent Deva
Prashna conducted in 1983 had indicated
that in two revolutions of Saturn(60 years) the temple would become as prominenent
as Guruvayur and SAbari Mala

This temple is the only one in Kerala to worship the ‘Varaha’
avatar of Shri Vishnu. This temple also houses and worhips Updevtas like
Sri Shiva (‘Vadakovil’), Sri Ayyappa, Sri Durgabhagavathy,
Sri Ganapathy, Sri Subramanya and Sri Lakshmi Narayan. This temple is
also said to have the blessings of Chitragupta and Yakshi. This
temple also has a stage and a huge ground to accommodate spectators. The
legendary ‘Panniyur thura’ is located just to the North of the Mahakshetra. It
is believed that the fishpond constructed by Parashuram used to be located just
a little south of the temple.

Among the different pujas conducted here the most
important one happens to be the ‘Abhishta Sidhdhi Puja’. This puja costs
Rs.101/- and is believed to pave way for ‘Abhishta Karya Sidhdhi’.

The Temple is situated in Kumbdi, a village
in Palakkad district on the border of Malappuram district is just
4 km from the Keltron Junction, in between Kuttippuram and Edappal
on SH-69 ( Kuttippuram-Thrissur Highway ). The famous Guruvayur temple is only
33 km away.

By Road

There are KSRTC and private buses available to Kumbidi
from nearby towns.

Routes by Road

Thrissur/Guruvayur side take Kunnamkulam-Edappal
route(SH-69) and before reaching Kuttippuram take right at Keltron Jn. to
Kumbidi.

Kozhikode side take Valanchery-Kuttippuram route
(NH-17), after Kuttippuram bridge take left at Keltron Jn. to Kumbidi.

Palakkad side take Ottappalam-Pattambi-Thrithala
route to Kumbidi.

By Rail

Nearest railway station is at Kuttippuram is only
7 km away

By Air

The nearest airport is Calicut International Airport
(distance 70 km) and the Cochin International/Nedumbassery Airport
(distance 100 km) away. All major International flight services are
operated from these airports.

Panniyur Sri Varahamurthy Temple is open from 6
AM to 10 AM and from 5:30 PM to 7:30 PM

'Sandhya Deeparadhana'(Pooja during evening time) is
considered as the most auspicious time to seek the blessings of Sri
Varahamurthy when idol would be covered
in sandal paste and adorned in
Jewellery

Monday, December 4, 2017

Puducode Bhagawathy Temple

By Ammu Patti

Puthucode is a picturesque small village lying on the western most border of Palghat District and bordering Thrissur District. It is approximately 40kms away from both Palghat and Thrissur towns. The nearest railway stations are Palghat and Thrissur. The nearest airports are Coimbatore and Kochi. The village is located 6 km west of Vadakkencherry on the Palakkad-Thrissur stretch of the National Highway 47. There are regular bus services from Thrissur and Palghat to Puthucode.

Puthucode agraharam with four streets with row houses was exclusively inhabited by Brahmins until a few decades back. Where the four streets meet is the famous Annapoorneswari temple. It would be apt to say the 4 agraharams are radiating from the central Annapoorneswari temple.

It is said that Sage Parasurama installed 108 Durgatemples in many parts of India and this is one of them. Currently this comes under Naduvil Madom Devaswam. The daily poojas are performed by Tamil Brahmins except during the Navarathri festival when they are performed by Thantris affiliated to Naduvil Madom Devaswam.

There is a belief among Brahmins of this village that this idol (4 feet tall) was got made in Truthala near Kuttanad and was brought by Brahmins of the village belonging to three Vedas by head load, with chanting the Vedas all the way without stopping any where on the way. It is believed at some stage in the life of the temple, the Tamil Brahmins gave the temple to the Naduvil Madam. According to a stone inscription, Sri Godavarma Raja gifted lots of rice fields for the maintenance of the temple. Also, several families had bequeathed land to the Devaswom in the olden days for the Annadhanam during Navarathri.These properties however, were abolished due to the Land reform act of Kerala. But the Tamil Brahmins of the village joined together and formed a trust called SAPCO (Sree Annapuneshwari Pooja Coordinators trust ) which is managing the temple at present. Though the Goddess is called Annapurneshwari, she holds in her hands Shanku and Chakra (Not ladle and vessel like the Annapurneshwari of Benares).

The temple occupies a vast area with a large outer Prakaaram and an inner Prakaaram. The main entrance to the temple faces east and as you enter the temple there is a Deepasthambham beyond which is the entrance to the inner Prakaaram of the temple. The inner Prakaaram is also very large with wide corridors known as Vathil maadams along the four sides, where discourses and concerts used to take place. The madapalli or the cook house is also situated here. As one gets inside the Mahaganapathy Sannidhi facing east can be seen. Going around the Mahaganapathy Sannidhi, you reach the main temple of Annapoorneswari. The Deity faces west. The Deity is also known as Santha Durga and is a very powerful Devi bestowing Her benevolent blessings to all Her devotees. The four handed idol of Devi is almost 4 feet tall. She is always dressed in a Pattu Pavadai. To see the Devi in her full Chandana kappu after the Deeparadhana in the evening is at once electrifying. It gives one such a joy and peace and real happiness. One just cannot take the eyes off Devi when She is adorned in full Chandana kappu.

In front of the Garba Griham or Sanctum is the Namaskara Mandapam, where Veda Parayanams and other daily recitals of Devi Mahatmyam and Shyamala Dandakam are done by devotees.

When you come around the Namaskara Mandapam, there is the Prathishta for Naga devata, Dharmasastha and Palliyarkkal Bhagavathy on the north-west corner of the main temple. A unique offering (vazhipadu) of Azhil is conducted in front of this Sannidhi. A new cloth (a set of 4 thorthus) dipped in Gingelly oil is hung on the poll in between two stone pillars. After doing a special pooja the archaka lights the cloth dipped in oil and allows it to burn down to ashes. This ash is used as prasadam and smeared on the forehead. It is believed that this offering will relieve one of all types of obstacles and misfortunes in life.

The other important offerings (vazhipadu) in the temple are Kalabhabhishekam, Niramala, Chuttuvilakku, Archanas, etc.

On the outer prakaaram, is the west nada, which is also known as Aanapandhi which has the gold plated dwajasthambam. This is where the Thayambaka and Keli take place during Navarathri celebrations.

Along the northern compound wall of the temple is the Agrisala, where cooking and dining take place during the Annadhanam of Navarathri.

The Sarat Navarathri during the months of September and October is the biggest festival in Puthucode Bhagavathy temple. All Her subjects who are far from home assemble at Puthucode during these nine days. The Dwajarohanam for the festival is on the Prathama thithi after Mahalaya Amavasya and the Aarattu on Vijayadashami day or the 10th day from the Dwajarohanam. There are daily processions with caparisoned elephants twice a day for the first 4 days inside the temple on the outer Praakaram and on the following 4 days the procession of caparisoned elephants with accompanying Panchavadyam and Chendamelam is taken to the 4 villages on successive days, starting with the South village on the 6th day. The Utsavamoorthy of the deity is taken atop the caparisoned elephant to all the villages for Her to see Her subjects. There is a Pallivetta on the 9th night followed by Aarattu on the 10th day. During Navarathri the Utsavamoorthy is taken atop the elephant to the nearby stream every morning where the deity is given a bath and after due alankarams taken back to the temple.

Measures of paddy and rice and other items like puffed rice, flowers, etc known as Parayeduppu are offered to Bhagavathy during the procession of elephants to the respective villages. The Parayeduppu for the south village is on the Aarattu day when the deity returns to the temple after her holy bath in the stream.

After Aarattu the elephant has to touch the Dwajasthambham which will mark the end of the festival for that year.

In 2003, devotees installed a new Dwajasthambham fully covered with gold.

True to Her name there is Annadhanam on all the 9 days of Navarathri for all devotees. Puthucode Pulinkari which is served with Rice and Olan is unique to this Navarathri Sadhya. The Sadasadaya Payasam (Idichujpizhinja payasam) offered to Bhagavathy during these days is also very famous. There is a saying in tamil Puthucoda vitta gramamum illai, Pulinkariye vitta kootanum illai which can be translated as, Puthucode is the ultimate among agraharams and Pulinkari is the ultimate among curries.

The Devi has blessed all Her children with wealth, health and positions and they in turn pay their respects to Her by donating to the temple funds.

The temple is open from 5.30am to 10.00am and 4.30pm to 9.00pm for worship. The Deeparadhana in the evening is at 6.30pm.

At the end of North Village is a Siva temple. The temple is situated at a lower level than the surrounding village. There is a large tank known as ayyankulam in front of the Siva temple. The presiding deity is facing east. There are also sannidhis for Mahaganapathy and Dharmasastha inside the temple. The annual festival in this Siva temple starts on the Thiruvathira day of the Malayalam month Dhanu and the Arattu is on the 8th day. Mahasivarathri is also celebrated in a grand manner with Maharudram, Abhishekam etc. Annabhishekam on the Pournami day of the Malayalam month Thulam is also very famous.

The temple opens for worship at 5.30am to 10.30 am and again at 4.30pm to 9.00pm.

Just outside the Siva temple there is a newly constructed Sivamahal in the north village, which can be used for functions like Marriage, Upanayanam etc.

Wednesday, November 22, 2017

It is another very famous ancient Sastha temples of Kerala. The temple
is surrounded by fresh water (sasthamkotta lake) lake on all three sides(The
biggest fresh water lake of Kerala)
and hill with dense forest on the
other side .A small town called
Sasthamkotta has come up near these
forests.

Shri Dharma Sastha temple is built in Kerala style of
architecture and was built by the Pandalam family .Sasthamcotta is a well
historic place where the Second World Religion Conference was held in 1971, in
which the Global Religious Celebrities participated.

Sasthamcotta is well connected with the other parts of
Kerala by road and rail. The National Highway (NH 47) passes through
Karunagapally and Chavara. Both these towns are just 12 km from Sasthamcotta.
Two other important places on MC Road (SH 1) that connect to Sasthamcotta are
Adoor and Kottarakara; both approximately 18 km away.

Sasthamcotta has a small railway station about 4 km from
Sasthamcotta town. Karunagappally railway station is about 12 km from
Sasthamcotta. Kollam Junction and Kayamkulam Junction are the two major railway
stations close to Sasthamcotta.

Folklore has that the idol consecrated at Sasthamcotta
temple is none other than the swayambhu idol worshipped by Lord Ram during his
trip to Lanka (Sri Lanka) in search of his consort, Sita. It seems Lord Rama when he was going from Sri Lanka
to Ayodhya visited this place , It is believed that, Lord Rama offered ‘pithru
tharpan’ on the banks of the Sasthamcotta Lake and he deputed the chief
architect of his vanara (monkey) team, ‘Neelan’ to serve his host. Neelan is
believed to be the predecessor of the monkey clan in this temple.It is also
believed that Lord Hanuman when he was searching for Sita has visited this place , There is also a prathishta of Ganesa
in this temple.

This temple has
very large number of monkeys roaming
all round it. The monkeys that once colonised the surrounding woods were
believed to be followers of the prime diety, Dharmasastha, and hence, are
revered by devotees. Thousands of devotees visiting the temple feed these
monkeys with nuts and fruits.

A few years ago,
the monkeys began to face shortage of food and they began to snatch food from
visitors to the temple and children going to nearby schools and colleges. The
Courts then ordered the Devaswom (Temple) Board to make arrangements to feed
the monkeys of the temple adequately. The Board, being short of funds, sought
support from well-wishers of the temple but adequate funds were not
forthcoming. Mr Gopala B. Pillai, founder and president of Wild Republic, and a
native of Sasthamkotta, heard about this dilemma and offered to set up a Trust
Fund jointly with the Devaswom Board to ensure perpetual feeding of the
monkeys. This was achieved in 1996 and since then the monkeys of the temple
have never been in want of food. On local festival days, when people feast at
home, the Trust arranges a similar feast for the monkeys of the temple also.

The presiding
deity of the temple is , Shri Dharma
Sastha who is accompanied by his consort 'Prabha' and son 'Sathyaka'.

The highlight of this temple is the 10 day annual
festival the month of Kumbham (February-March). The festival includes the
colourful Kettukazhcha procession of various bullocks, horses, decorated
chariots, folk art performances etc. Various folk arts such as Mayilattam,
Kaala (bull motif), Kuthira (horse motif), Ammankudam are performed. The
festival concludes with the Arattu ceremony, five caparisoned elephants take
part in a procession held at midnight. Another important festival is Shiva
Prathishta Vaarshikom which is held in Atham in the Malayalam month of Edavam
(May-June).

Entry is restriceted to Hindus.

Sasthamcotta Neelakandan

Sasthamcotta Neelakandan is the elephant at Sasthamcotta
Temple (Sasthamcotta Manikandan was the first elephant at the temple.
Sasthamcotta Manikandan passed away in the year 1999). Neelakandan is the vital
part of Sasthamcotta temple. He carries the deity of the Lord Dharmasastha
during annual festival processions and ceremonial circumambulations in the
temple. Nelakandan is donated by Sri. Ajith Kumar, who is a well known
business man in the UAE, as his offering.

Sasthamcotta Sree Dharma Sastha Temple is open from
4:30 AM to 11:30 AM and from 5 PM to 7:45 PM